Student Drowns in Background of Friend’s Selfie

Vishwas

The student, known as Vishwas, was having a picnic with his friends near Bangalore, India. He began to struggle in the water they had all jumped into. This went unnoticed by his friends, who continued to laugh and take pictures as their friend drowned.

Swimming

Viskwas and his friends were all from the National College, and were in that area for a school trip. They decided, while there, to go into a pond near the temple the school trip was about. This was in spite of the signs warning people not to go in the water.

One student, Sumanth, said that when they left the temple, they “…did not notice Vishwas’ absence.” He said that “One of the students was looking through his phone pictures and was stunned to see Vishwas drowning. He immediately alerted the NNC [National Cadet Corps] unit chief, Professor Girish, and other friends, and by the time they returned to the Kalyani, an hour had passed. Vishwas was nowhere to be seen.”

Police said that Professor Girish was there at the time, but the college states that no college officials were with the students at that time.

The local police pulled Vishwas’ body from the water, where his parents found him. They had rushed there after hearing the news through friends.

Furious Family

Viskwas was the oldest son of an autorickshaw driver, Govindaraju, and his wife Sunanda. They blame the college for his death. At one point, they sat outside the college with his body, in protest.

A police spokesperson has said that the father has “…filed a complaint alleging that negligence by the National College management cost his son his life.” However, the claim of negligence was called off after the college management promised an investigation and disciplinary action against any staff members who were seen to be at fault.